Love Makes Fools of Us All
by ObliviousZero
Summary: Love makes everyone act strangely. Beast Boy finally works up the nerve to ask out Raven [real original huh?]. It’s pretty obvious that he loves her, but does she feel the same way? Rated T just to be safe. Lots of OCs. BBRae, RobStar, hint of CyOC.
1. Chapter 1

Love Makes Fools of Us All

Summary: It's not always about time! We all know what makes people act weird. Beast Boy finally works up the nerve to ask out Raven (real original huh?). It's pretty obvious that he loves her, but does she feel the same way?

My first fanfic! I think we've all gone through something like this, or maybe I'm just a freak. My favorite couple is Robin & Starfire, but I can relate to Beast Boy better, so let's just see how it all works out. Some references to other stories. Sorry if it seems to drag, I get lost in the details sometimes. All reviews/criticisms/whatever are welcome. Don't be haters though. BBRae (if hadn't figured it out). Enjoy!

I don't own Teen Titans or any of the characters, but if I did it'd be so much better. Sure they'd have to move it to Adult Swim (also not my property), but trust me, it'd be worth it.

Chapter 1: Head Over Heels

He was in his room alone, lying down on the top bunk with his eyes closed, letting the rhythmic bass lines of the hip-hop blaring from his stereo wash over him. It had been a long week. Dr. Light, again, Cinderblock, Punk Rocker, and another assault on the tower by Mammoth, Jinx, and Gizmo. It must've been a villain holiday or something. Reflecting back on the arduous week, it seemed all he could think about was the deep purple eyes, lavender hair, tantalizing form, and ashen, but still alluring flesh that had been both the pleasure and plague of his dreams as of late.

_Me and Rae, yeah right._

This must have been the millionth time these words went through his head. Over time, he had gotten used to Raven and their "relationship". But he never imagined them going any farther than this rather peculiar…friendship I guess you could call it.

_Where are these feelings coming from?_

All he knew was that, at some point, she stopped being a teammate and now meant something more.

_It's not like I'm good enough for her anyway. I act like a 10-year old, and am about as smart as-_

The door became engulfed in a black aura and slid open with a crash. This caused Beast Boy's to jerk and careen, less than gracefully, from his bunk and land on the floor flat on his back. When he opened his eyes again, he saw the dark silhouette of a hooded figure outlined by the light being emitted from the ceiling fixtures. He rubbed his eyes and they began to adjust to the abstract light, revealing the pale skin and shrouded violet eyes of the object of his secret desire gazing down at him nonchalantly. All he could manage to do was grin childishly up at her.

"Would you mind turning it down?" she asked dully.

"Uhhh...uh, sure." he managed to stammer getting up and turning the volume of the stereo down so that it was barely audible. "Sorry." he muttered.

"Whatever." she said coldly walking out of the room, the door closing behind her.

_Good job stupid._

He walked over to the window and leaned against the wall, looking up at the stars.

_Why can't I just tell her how I feel?_

He closed his eyes. An image of her flashed and his eyes snapped open. He was at the door to Raven's room his hand inches from knocking. He didn't even remember how he had gotten there. He stood there for what seemed like an eternity, but couldn't have been for more than a few minutes, just staring at her door. Starfire floated down the hall drinking a soda. She starred at Beast Boy, slightly confused, then came up behind him and began staring at the door too. After another couple of minutes she looked at Beast Boy inquisitively, shrugged and continued floating down the hall. Beast Boy hadn't even noticed her.

_This is stupid! Just do it!...Wait? Was that Starfi- STAY ON TASK STUPID! Ok... Here we go._

He brought his hand back, paused, and then released it towards the door. The moment before his hand was about to make contact with the door it slid open. Beast Boy unceremoniously fell forward into Raven's room. He twisted his body, trying to maintain his balance, but to no avail. He landed, once again, flat on his back.

"Déjà vu." said the dark hooded figure above him.

"Uhhh…hi." seemed to be all he could coerce out of his lungs.

There was a long silence, which Raven abruptly ended when she began to step over Beast boy to leave the room.

"No wait!" he almost shouted.

"What"

"Ummm…you…uhh…got any…plans for the weekend?"

Raven raised an eyebrow.

"Not really. Why?"

The butterflies in his stomach had just declared war. He felt even more foolish asking this from the ground, so he got up rubbing his arm nervously. He glanced at Raven, who now began to appear impatient, and then averted his eyes to the floor.

"I was wonderin' if…uhhh…"

"If what?"

"If you'd…wanna go see a movie or something?"

Raven was taken aback to say the least. Her eyes went wide and her mouth went slightly agape.

"Are you serious?" she asked.

When she saw the hurt in his eyes from her response she knew he wasn't kidding. Beast Boy's eyes met hers and she saw tears welling up in them.

"No…no course I wasn't serious!" he said closing his eyes and forcing a grin while scratching the back of his head. There was a touch of pain in his voice that a deaf person could have recognized.

"That's a shame." she said softly, cracking a small smile and taking a step closer to him. "Cus I'd really like that."

"Yeah course…Wait WHAT?"

"I said that I'd like that."

Beast Boy just stared at her for a minute. The look of overwhelming sadness was slowly replaced by a look of pure elation with still a hint of disbelief.

"Really?...AWESO-I mean, that's cool."

Raven's smile widened a little.

"Soooo, tomorrow after dinner then?" he asked.

"Sounds good. As long as I get to pick the movie."she said still smiling.

While still retaining the look of happiness, he donned a look of apprehension.

"You're gonna pick one of those weird goth movies that I'll find really boring cus I don't get any of it, won't you?"

Raven looked up and thought for a moment and then met his gaze again.

"Yeah, probably."

Beast Boy continued to stare at her with renewed anxiety in his eyes. Raven giggled a little.

"Why don't you pick the movie and I pick where we eat?" laughing a little.

"Sounds good!" he said enthusiastically, his playful smile retuning.

There was a short silence, during which the two stared at each other smiling. Finally realizing how awkward this was they broke eye contact, Beast Boy looking at the floor and Raven staring off into some random corner of her dark room. Raven laughed quietly to herself and shook her head slightly. She looked back at Beast Boy who was still glancing nervously about the room

"I'll see you tomorrow Garfield."

"Alrigh-HEY! Who told you!"

Raven just laughed at the shocked look on his face and pretty soon he was laughing too. Their laughs slowed soon after and their eyes met again.

"Night Raven." he said softly still smiling.

"Good night Beast Boy." she said just as softly, also smiling.

Beast Boy walked out of Raven's room and into the hall way. The door quietly closed behind him. He leaned back against the door still in complete disbelief of what had just happened. He smacked himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming.

_OWWWWW! Guess I don't know my own strength. Well at least I know I'm not dreaming._

The reality of it all hit him hard and fast. He felt the smile on his face grow to proportions he didn't even think were possible. He broke out into his trademark happy dance and began laughing uncontrollably. Amidst his incoherent steps and wildly flailing arms he accidentally hit the button that opened the door to Raven's room. Beast Boy ceased his little jig and gazed in a mix of horror, surprise, and hilarity as he observed Raven, with her back to the door, doing a similar happy dance. Beast Boy could do little more than star openmouthed as Raven continued. Doing a little spin Raven finally noticed that her door was open and Beast Boy was staring at her. She froze mid-turn almost falling over, but regained her balance. She felt herself blushing as she returned his incredulous stare.

"Uhhh…uhhh…night." she said quickly before hastily closing the door on her cloak.

She opened the door again to untangle her cloak. She knew that she was blushing harder than ever and it didn't help that Beast Boy was still staring at her. She swiftly pulled her cloak from the path of the door and before closing it, giving Beast Boy one more quick glance, finding that he was actually smiling. Not in a mocking way though, it was a compassionate, understanding smile, which she returned before quietly closing the door.

Beast Boy returned to his room, never feeling that smile leave his face. He got ready for bed and slipped beneath the covers of the lower bunk, he didn't feel like falling from the top twice in one day. He laid back with his hands behind his head thinking about how much had changed in the last hour or so. Everything was finally coming together for him.

_I don't think I've ever felt this good before. Hmmm. Wonder where she's gonna pick for us to eat. Eh, how weird could it be? Wait a minute, this is Raven we're talkin about. It's gonna be beyond weird._

He sighed and laid in silence for a moment before grinning again.

_Doesn't matter how freaky it is. She's worth it. Ugh, I just hope it's not one of those carnivore restaurants._

Beast Boy laughed to himself.

_Nah, she wouldn't do that. Everything'll be fine._

"Ohhh yeah." he whispered to himself as he slowly closed his eyes. He slept long and soundly, the same kindhearted smile he'd given Raven never leaving his face.

Hope you guys liked it! I've already got Chapter 2 on the Brain! Please review! Any and all feedback is welcome. Once again though, don't be haters. It's only my first story. Sorry if it drags a little. Like I said, I get lost in the details sometimes. Peace and Love!


	2. Chapter 2

Sorry if this one gets off topic. I had an interesting experience involving my friends paying me to devour things of…questionable edibility (the one mentioned being the tamest of them all). Anyway I felt it necessary to put a little of this into the story and it ended up being most of the chapter. I still think it's ok though. Hope you like it! Don't forget: R&R!

I don't own Teen Titans or any of the characters blah blah blah. Copyright's going to be my slow, bloody demise.

Chapter 2: Bed and Breakfast

He embraced her tightly, his arms around her shoulders. Her arms slowly slipped around him and she rested her head on his shoulder nuzzling his neck.

"I love you." he whispered so softly he wasn't sure she had heard it.

There was a long silence. He was just about to repeat what he said, when she hugged him tighter.

"I love you too." she said quietly.

He felt a smile spread across his face. And, although he couldn't feel it, he knew she was smiling too. Then he felt a wet spot forming on his shoulder. She was crying. He gently pushed her away and held her a little closer than an arm's length. She was indeed crying. Tears were streaming down her face, but strangely, she was smiling. Confusion swept over him.

"Wha…why are you crying?" he asked with a serious look of concern on his face.

She stared at him, still openly weeping.

"You're the first person to ever say that to me."

She threw her arms back around him and hugged him so tightly he could barely breathe. He exhaled sharply, but didn't ask her to ease up. He simply put his arms back around her and held her gently. Eventually, she loosened her death grip on his torso and pushed away from him gently. She put her hand on his chest, keeping the other around his middle, and looked up at him. Their faces were only inches apart. They both smiled at each other, their eyes locked. Her smile slowly faded as her gaze intensified. He felt his face doing the same. She slowly leaned in. Her eyes closed and her lips-

"BOOYAH!"

Beast Boy's snapped open. Sunlight was coming through the half open shades of his bedroom window, revealing several piles of clothes and an impossibly high stack of pizza boxes, probably not all empty. He rolled over so he was facing the wall. He groaned and pulled the blankets over his head, wanting to go back to sleep.

_Uh...what a dream. Man, why'd Cy have to go and yell like that. I was so close. Just a few more seconds and…_

He let out a long frustrated sigh.

…_oh well._

He got up and put on a pair of purple shorts and a white tank top. Then idly scratched his head and rake his fingers though his hair. Absentmindedly turning into a dog, he stretched and yawned. Changing back to his normal form, he walked out of his room, down the hallway, and into the living room. He saw Cyborg on the couch and Robin and Starfire at the breakfast table. He walked over to the couch.

"What's with all the noise man?"

"Oh, sorry BB." Cyborg said grinning up at Beast Boy. "Didn't mean to wake you up. I got a new high score in Death Match IV (yes, it's made up) and couldn't help but give the ol' victory yell."

"No problem, I probably should've gotten up anyway."

"Hey you wanna do a couple versus matches?"

"No thanks. Maybe later."

Beast Boy wearily walked to the kitchen and got some cereal from a cupboard and soy milk out of the fridge. He then grabbed a bowl and spoon and walked over to the table. He set everything down on the table and took the empty seat next to Starfire. He began pouring his cereal, when he noticed that Robin had a look of bewilderment on his face. Beast Boy looked to his left and saw Starfire dunking jalapeños in ranch dressing and then raspberry jelly and gobbling them down like they were candy (I do not recommend trying this). She then washed it down with a long swig from a 2 liter bottle of Dr. Pepper. Even though he had seen this girl chug mustard, he still found this unsettling. After setting down the now empty soda bottle, she let out a belch that shook the tower. Smiling contently, she finally noticed the two boys staring at her.

"There is something the matter with my new found victual delight? They are even more delicious than the mustard!" she said he smile growing even wider.

Beast Boy was about to say something about how disgusting that was, when he realized that it was perfectly vegetarian.

_Nothing had to die to bring Starfire this joy, except my appetite of course, so what harm could come of it? In fact…_

"Hey Star! Mind if I try one?"

Robin was shocked by this, but Starfire squealed with glee. "Of course you may friend! Let me prepare one for you!"

Starfire took the biggest jalapeño she could find and began swirling it in the bowl of salad dressing.

"Are you sure about this Beast Boy?" Robin asked with a hint of doubt in his voice.

"Why not? It's vegetarian, and we always assume the things Star eats are gross before we even taste them. Maybe the reward is worth the risk."

Robin thought about this a moment and said "Huh. I guess you're right. I never really thought about it. You know what? Starfire, set me up too."

"Yeah! That's the spirit!" Beast Boy said cheerfully. "I mean, the worst thing that could happen is…well…us both dying long horrible deaths. Right?"

"Uhhh…yeah." Robin muttered nervously.

Starfire began laughing, overwhelmed by how open-minded her friends were being. "I shall begin preparing one for you at once! Here is yours Beast Boy!" she said smiling as she handed him the jelly and ranch dressing covered pepper and then bounding off to the fridge again.

Beast Boy eyed Starfire's new snack warily. He then shrugged and popped it into his mouth. Robin stared nervously as Beast Boy began to chew. Beast Boy paused for a moment with a look of horror in his eyes. His eyes rolled back in his head as he fell forward, his forehead hitting the table.

"Star! Quick!" Robin yelled rushing over to Beast Boy

Starfire came back to the table, another jar of peppers in one arm and a bottle of Dr. Pepper in the other. She gave Beast Boy a cursory glance and then smiled at Robin.

"Oh. Do not worry Robin. He simply neglected to complete the process." She said calmly walking over and pulling Beast Boy's head back. She unscrewed the top of the Dr. Pepper bottle and began to pour the contents into his mouth. Beast Boy sat up quickly with a huge smile on his face.

"WOW! THAT"S INCREDIBLE!" Beast Boy yelled. "The Dr. Pepper really brings the taste together! Now I see why you like these so much Star!"

Starfire laughed and smiled widely when he said this.

"I am most pleased that my discovery has brought you joy! Would you like another?"

"Yeah! Thanks Star! Next time we have a movie night you gotta make a huge plate of these! Raven might even crack a smile after trying one!"

Starfire laughed again at this. None of the Titans had seen Raven smile on more than one or two separate occasions, and even then it was short-lived and because it was usually at Beast Boy's expense, so the prospect of seeing Raven smile out of actual happiness was really exciting to them.

_If only they knew…_

Beast Boy grinned to himself. Before last night, he didn't think it was possible for anyone, save Starfire, to smile that much in such a short time. And this was Raven they were talking about; the queen of darkness, the master or morbidity and depression. Who'd have thought she was only looking for someone to open up to? They all suspected that she valued being alone. It was weird to them at first, but after a while they got used to it and simply didn't question it anymore. Beast Boy's grin faded.

_If only we had known..._

Just then Raven floated into the living room. Everyone, except Cyborg who continued to play videogames, stopped what they were doing and watched her come in. She stopped in the middle of the room, looked down at the floor, and took a deep breath.

"G-good morning everyone."

Robin's mouth fell open and Starfire was shocked for a moment, but then smiled widely. There was a blood curdling death cry as the controller slid out of Cyborg's hands and the TV flashed Game Over. Beast boy couldn't do anything but smile.

"Morning Rae." he said softly but assuringly.

"Most glorious of mornings to you as well friend Raven!" Starfire replied excitedly.

Robin just stared with his mouth agape. Cyborg never even turned around. He simply sat there staring as the game instant replayed his characters brutal and bloody demise at the hands of the CPU player. Raven looked up. She was blushing a little as she looked at Beast Boy and gave a little smile. She quickly blanked her face as Starfire came over and gave her one of her usual bone-crushing hugs. Raven didn't return the hug, but simply rolled her eyes. Starfire didn't mind. It had already been a big day of firsts. After being released Raven moved quickly into the kitchen probably to make her usual morning cup of herbal tea. Beast Boy watched as Raven gracefully glided across the floor, her tight unitard accentuating her form and her cloak billowing majestically behind her. He grinned to himself.

_This is gonna be an interesting day._

Hope you liked it! A little bit of an interlude in the story, but it felt right. R&R please!


	3. Chapter 3

Thanks for all the great feedback you guys have been givin' for chapters 1 &2. I can feel the love! Sorry if I drag some again, but when I get an idea in my head it has to be put to paper or my head might explode. I just tried to have some fun with this one. Hope you guys like it. Enjoy!

I do not own the Teen Titans or any of the characters, but their thoughts, actions, and emotions bend at my whim! Being God is fun!

Chapter 3:

The rest of Beast Boy's day was interesting to say the least. After Cyborg had recovered from the shock of Raven so much as speaking before noon, to say nothing of her actually saying 'good morning', Beast Boy challenged him to a Death Match marathon.

"Don't worry Cy. You didn't get beat that badly." Beast Boy said smiling at a very discontent Cyborg. There a slight tone of sarcasm in his voice, being that the final count at the end of the 3 hour ordeal was Beast Boy with 39 wins to Cyborg's 11. Cyborg just grumbled and sulked off to the garage to work on the T-Car.

"I'm sure you'll do better next time!" Beast Boy yelled after him. He yelped and ducked just in time to dodge the wrench that had come flying in from down the hallway that led to the garage. The wrench bounced harmlessly off the steel wall behind Beast Boy. He couldn't help but grin to himself.

After a quick lunch of vegetarian chili and changing into his usual form-fitted black and purple uniform, Beast Boy went down to the gym. As he walked in he saw Robin practicing on his wing chun dummy. His hands moved in a blur around the wooden pegs, striking at various pressure points, making a loud thunk every time he struck the dummy. This impressive display of strength and hand-eye coordination more than intimidated Beast Boy.

"Wanna go a few rounds Beast Boy?" Robin asked grinning at Beast Boy.

"Uhhh…uhh…sure. I guess." he replied nervously. Beast Boy knew that there was no way he could beat Robin in hand to hand combat. Beast Boy relied almost entirely on his ability to transform into animals to fight. While Robin didn't have any powers, he more than made up for it by having almost precognitive reflexes, inhuman speed, and incredible strength.

"Go easy on me dude." he said as they walked over to the sparring area. "Not all of us can take down twenty guys without having to turn into a gorilla or a tiger."

"I'll do my best, but when I fight, I fight to win." he said coolly. Beast Boy groaned and slumped at this.

"Alright dude, just try not to hurt me too badly." He said straightening up and taking a defensive position. Robin wasted no time. He quickly slipped into his offensive stance and charged at Beast Boy. Before he could blink Beast Boy found himself on his back. Robin had done a quick sweep kick knocking Beast Boy's legs out from under him. Robin stood above him still in his offensive stance.

"You're not concentrating Beast Boy." he said showing no emotion. This continued for another half hour, Beats Boy getting decked by Robin and never once realizing exactly what had happened.

"I'm gonna call it quits man. I don't think I can take another beating like that." Beast Boy said getting to his feet.

"Come on, just one more time."

"Dude, this just isn't my thing. When I'm an animal my instincts take over and tell me how to fight. But when I'm just me I have trouble walking without tripping over my own feet."

"Try clearing your mind. Relax, stay loose, and then react."

"Alright, I guess once more couldn't hurt…uhhh…never mind. Let's do this." he said sighing. Robin took his offensive position again, but Beast Boy just stood there. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to concentrate.

_All right Gar, just survive this and you're done. You don't want Robin to think you're a wuss._

He tried to clear his mind, when, of all things, the thought of Raven flashed in his mind.

_Why would I think of her now?_

Beast Boy opened his eyes and saw that Robin had already begun his charge. He cringed and closed his eyes preparing for the impact. He felt his muscles tighten and his feet slide back. He opened his eyes, but didn't see Robin anywhere. He looked down and saw robin lying flat on his back with the most surprised look he'd ever seen on the Boy Wonder's face.

"Uhhh, what're you doin' on the ground dude?" he asked looking down at Robin.

"What do you mean? You put me here!"

"Really?" he said now equally surprised.

"Yeah, I'm not even really sure what you did. Since when could you move like that?"

"Uhhh… not sure. Well…thanks for the workout dude." Beast Boy said grinning and scratching the back of his head. He began to walk out, still a little bewildered as to how he had managed to beat Robin even if it was only once out of maybe 30 times.

"Wait a second Beast Boy." Robin said getting up. "We're gonna do this again. I don't think anyone has ever countered me like that except for Slade and Batman. You've got potential and I'm not letting it go to waste."

_Great. What have I gotten myself into?_

"Sure dude, but not right now. I promised Star I'd help her with something."

"Alright, but don't think I'm going easy on you anymore." Robin said grinning at Beast Boy.

"Wouldn't expect anything less. Seeya later." he said walking back towards the living room. Beast Boy really had promised to help Starfire, but was glad all the same to have an excuse to cease the thrashing Robin had been giving him before that last bout.

_What made me react like that? There's no way I could ever move that fast. Maybe it was-_

"Friend Beast Boy!" Starfire yelled happily from the couch as Beast Boy entered the living room. She flew from the couch over to Beast Boy.

"You ready Star?" Beast Boy asked as she approached.

"Oh yes! I am most anticipating learning the production of the shrill noise made produced by pursing one's lips! What is it you called it? Whittling?"

"Whistling Star." he said smiling. It was a long hour and a half, but after a lot of practice, a lot of patience, and somehow a loss of most of the living room, Starfire could do a good, loud two-tone whistle and even whistle some simple tunes.

"Ok, as long as you keep from trying too hard, I don't think you'll shoot star bolts when you whistle." Beast Boy said assuringly. "You're actually better than me now."

"I apologize for the difficulty I presented. I did not know why this "whistling" was forbidden on Tamaran, but now I see why my K'Norfka said it caused the fall of many planets. You are a most excellent teacher though. Thank you Beast Boy." She said contently giving him a small hug.

"You're welcome Star." he said returning the hug.

"I shall see you later." she said smiling as she flew down towards the gym, probably to show her new talent off to Robin.

_Robin's lucky to have a girl like her. I just wish he'd figure out that she likes him. How long's it been since she started crushing on him? Like a year? That's just sad...Guess I'm not one to talk about not realizing those kind of feelings._

Beast Boy glanced at the clock above the TV. It read 5:42 in bright blue numbers.

_Hmmm...there was something else I was supposed to do today..._

The image of Raven again flashed in his mind.

"DOY!" he yelled, smacking himself in the head. He quickly ran to his room and grabbed his towel. Then he dashed down the hall to the bathroom hoping no one was using it. Cyborg was just coming out when he saw Beast Boy sprinting towards him.

"WHOA!" he yelled as he jumped out of the way to avoid having Beast Boy collide with him.

"Thanks-Cy-sorry!" he said quickly as he ran past him into the bathroom. He closed the door and turned on the shower. After hanging his towel up on one of the hooks adorning the wall next to the shower, he got undressed and hastily threw his dirty clothes into the hamper in the corner. He jumped in to the shower and howled in distress as the water couldn't have bee more than 45°F. He quickly adjusted the knobs to get the water to a comfortable temperature.

"Ahhh." he sighed contently as the warm water began flowing over his shoulders. The tepid water felt good on the bruises Robin had left from there sparring. He hurriedly washed and got out of the shower. Not wanting to spray water everywhere by changing into a wolf and shaking himself dry as he often did at the beach or pool, he toweled himself off and threw the towel around his waist. Walking to the sink, he grabbed his tooth brush from the rack, picking it from amongst the red, blue, black, green, and pink ones, and spread some toothpaste from the 'community tube' on it. After brushing his teeth, he walked out of the bathroom and back down the hall to his room.

Beast Boy, now back in his room and wearing his lucky boxers, which were black with green tiger claw marks, was grabbing clothes out of his closet.

_Casual clothes are probably a good move. They're more comfortable and they'll make us a little less noticeable. The last thing I want is getting rushed by Titan fans while on the streets. Hmmm...I wonder what Raven considers casual. Come to think of it, I don't think I've ever seen her in anything but her crime fighting outfit...weird._

He'd decided on some baggy blue jeans and a loose purple hoodie with a large, green 58 on the front over a tight green T-shirt. After putting on some ankle socks he grabbed his favorite shoes out of the closet. They were a pair of purple skateboarder shoes with green soles and laces. They were his babies, his T-Car if you will. He only wore them for times he considered to be special occasions. The last time he wore them was during a city wide tofu eating competition, which he ended up winning. It was followed a week long case of indigestion, but he still thought it was worth it. He glanced up at the shelf which held the trophy he had received for said victory, which had a rather portly man holding a plate with a large solid cube of tofu on it over his head atop it. A grin crept across his face.

_Good times man. Good times._

He looked at his clock. It read 5:58.

_Wow! I made good time._

Grabbing his wallet, keys to the tower, and communicator off of his dresser he walked out of his room and towards Raven's. He stopped in front of her room and brought his hand up to knock.

_All right...let's hope this goes better than last time._

He moved to knock and, of course, the door opened just before his fist made contact with the door. He fell forward, but instead of trying to regain his balance, he simply let himself plummet to the ground almost as if he had finally accepted that this was going to be a normal occurrence from now on. Just before he face planted the ground, a pillow enveloped in a black aura zoomed in front of him. His body harmlessly collapsed onto the pillow.

"Phanks Lay." Beast Boy said speaking into the pillow. He rolled off of it so that he was lying face up on the floor and found Raven starring down at him with a little smirk on her face.

"What was that?"

"I said…thanks Rae" he said smiling up at her. After getting to his feet he looked her up and down and then stared at her questioningly. She was still wearing her usual unitard and cloak.

"Uhhh…are you ready to go?" he asked.

"Yeah, are you?"

"Yeah, but…uhhh…is that what you're gonna wear?"

"What's wrong with what I'm wearing?" she asked raising an eyebrow.

"Nothing nothing." he said putting up his hands up defensively with a hint of panic in his voice. "It's just that I thought we'd go a little more…laid back."

"Hmmm." she murmured in thought as she looked over what he was wearing. There was a short silence before she closed her eyes and then looking up at him said, "All right. Give me a minute."

"Uhhh, ok." Beast Boy said a little surprised as he backed out of her room. Raven didn't usually venture far from her 'norm'. He put his hands behind his head and leaned up against the wall across from the door to Raven's room. Looking up at the ceiling, he tried to imagine what Raven would wear. He couldn't even begin to imagine her in anything besides what she normally wore.

_She'll probably go with the goth look...or maybe more of a punk style? I don't know._

The door slid open and Raven walked out. Beast Boy lowered his eyes from the ceiling and his mouth nearly dropped to the floor. Raven was wearing a tight black long sleeved shirt that hung off her shoulders over a black tank top and loose but still flattering black cargo pants and black boots. The only thing that she hadn't changed from her usual outfit was her yellow belt which now hung loosely about her waist. She also had about a half dozen blue and black rubber bracelets on her left wrist and a black choker.

_I knew that Raven was hot but...beautiful doesn't seem like a big enough word. Why couldn't I ever see it before?_

"Y-you look. You look…wow!" he stammered as she walked over and placed a single finger under his chin lifting it shut.

"Glad you like it. I didn't think I'd ever wear the stuff Starfire made me get from the mall." she said smiling and putting her hands behind her back. "You look good too. It's very…you."

"Thanks, that's what I was going for." They both grinned at each other. "Shall we?'

"Let's."

They started down the hall, but when Beast Boy went towards the stairs that led to the ground level exit Raven grabbed his hand and pulled him to the stairs that led to the roof. He hesitated for a moment, but then let her lead on. He saw a small smile on her face as they ran up the stairs, her hand reaching back and holding his tightly as he struggled to keep up. Even though he had no idea what was going on, he couldn't help but smile.

_This is going to be very interesting._

While there was a lot of weirdness in there, I really liked the ending. Also hope you guys like the new "looks" I gave Raven and Beast Boy. I kind of projected myself on to Beast Boy (less all the green and purple, LOVE THE BLACK BABY!) so I had to give him a little of my style, or lack there of. Raven's outfit just kind of came to me. Don't send any hate mail because of the way I dressed her! Blame the game, not the playa! I only go where my artistic instinct leads me (currently pointed off a cliff I can only assume leads to Candy Land). Stay tuned for the next chapter. The date might actually start! R&R, Peace and Love!


	4. Chapter 4

I get a little deep into the imagery here. The whole chapter actually takes place over a 10-15 minute period. I've gotten some good feedback about paying close attention to the details though, so I figured you guys wouldn't mind. R&R please. Enjoy!

I don't own the Teen Titans or any of the characters. I'm so sick of doing this! If the right to the use of cartoon characters in harmless fanfics was an ice cream flavor, it'd be pralines and dick (a little tribute to the Wayne's World fans out there).

Chapter 4: Beauty and the Beast Boy

They reached the top of the stairs and Raven pushed open the door without even slowing down. The cool dusk air and gentle glow of twilight washed over them. They continued running until Raven began to slow as they approached the edge of the roof. Beast Boy slowed down too, still staying just behind her. Raven stopped at the edge and turned to face Beast Boy.

"So what are we doing up here?" he asked with a perplexed look on his face. "I thought we were going to get something to eat."

"We are." she said with a small smile. "I thought flying would be a little more fun though."

Beast Boy smiled widely. He sprinted towards the edge of the roof and jumped just before reaching it. Changing into a falcon, he began a vertical dive down the side of the Tower. Pulling up, he executed some ascending back flips and started circling their large home. He kept a steady climb until he was about twenty feet above the roof. Looking down he saw a pile of clothes next to a smiling Raven.

_Hey! Wait a minute...OHHH MAN! I guess my normal clothes don't change with me._

He flew down behind the outcropping formed by the stairs leading to the roof and changed back into his normal form.

_Smooth Gar. Real smooth._

"Uhhh…little help here?" he called to Raven.

"Did you mean to do that?" she asked laughing.

"NO! Of course not! I didn't know that could happen! I've never tried changing in anything but my Doom Patrol uniform. Just give me my clothes."

"Nice boxers." She said almost sarcastically as she levitated Beast Boy's lucky shorts out of the pile.

"HEY! J-just give'em back!" he yelled blushing.

"Calm down. They're kinda cute." she said as she levitated the rest of his clothes around the corner of the outcropping to where he was standing.

"Y-you really think so?"

"Just get dressed 'tiger'." she said still laughing a little.

After getting redressed, he came out from behind the outcropping still looking a little embarrassed.

"Well that could've gone better." Beast Boy said looking at the ground just in front of Raven's feet and scratching the back of his head. Raven just shook her head and gave a little laugh.

"Need a lift?" she asked as a black aura enveloped a piece of sheet metal and floated over to him.

"Uh, sure. Thanks." he said sheepishly as he stepped up onto the makeshift platform.

"Don't sweat it."

They began to fly towards the city. Raven kept Beast Boy floating right next to her. He kept looking straight ahead with his hands in the kangaroo pouch of his hoodie.

"Sorry 'bout that Rae." he said quietly

"I already said don't worry about it. It's not like I expected perfection."

Beast Boy's already troubled look darkened significantly.

_Of course. What else would she expect from a goof like me? I can't do anything right!_

"I mean, if you were perfect I'd probably hate you." she said not noticing his pained expression.

Beast Boy's face instantly brightened.

"I can't stand people like that. Even though you make mistakes, you don't mind taking the blame. Plus its stuff like that that makes me laugh, which as you probably know, doesn't happen…well ever." she said looking over to him with a small smile (sorry I keep with the 'small smiles' and stuff of the like. I just can't picture Raven having a big smile on her face).

"Well you picked the right guy then!" he said smiling widely. "Cus stuff like that happens to me three times before breakfast everyday."

"As I recall, it was you who picked me." she said coolly still smirking.

"Well I…you coulda…see it was...shut up!"

There was a short silence before they both started laughing. It was only for a few moments, but Beast Boy treasured it. He was glad that he could get the person he considered to be the loneliest being on the planet to laugh. She returned to looking forward to concentrate on her flying. They had just started to fly over the city.

_I didn't think Raven was capable of smiling. Now I don't think I can picture her any other way. I still can't believe I got her to laugh…twice! I almost feel bad about not asking her sooner. I just left her in the dark. Damn it Gar. The answer was there the whole time, and you wasted precious time tryin' to 'sort out your feelings'. Well, better late than never I guess. Still..._

Beast Boy looked at her, almost as if for the first time. She flew with her body parallel to the ground beneath them, her arms at her side and her head tilted back. The gentle breeze blew her hair back so he could clearly see her face, which was normally obscured beneath her hood. Her normally listless violet eyes now shimmered brightly in the fading daylight. That same light made features that he had never even noticed before as clear as day. Her arms were slender and sleek. While not muscular, they definitely had a potential to unleash a great amount of force. While her legs were not visible, Beast Boy had seen them when she wore her normal unitard. They were long and graceful. They too were not muscular, but the same as her arms, gave the impression of being able to unleash a vast amount power if necessary. While these characteristics made Raven alluring, they were also evidence that she was not a force to be trifled with, even without her powers. Many people found this intimidating, and up until recently so had Beast Boy. Now, however, he actually found this quality attractive. Her midriff, exposed just below the bottom of her shirt, looked smooth, but not soft. It looked as though her stomach would be firm to the touch even if there was no prominent bulge of abdominal muscle. Her entire figure in general seemed to be composed of a single, flawless curve. The magnificence of her many other features would simply be demeaned by putting mortal words to them (and between you and me, I'm reaching my eloquencial limit here).

_My god. How could I have never seen this?How could anyone ignore this kind of beauty?_

Raven turned and saw him staring at her. She blushed and quickly went back to concentrating on her flying.

"You know, you look really nice Raven." he said softly.

"Wha- Didn't we do whole 'complimenting each other on how good we look thing' already?" she asked still blushing a little.

"Yeah, but before I just kinda stuttered out 'wow'. Even now, 'nice' doesn't seem to be nearly enough."

"Stop it Garfield." she said laughing nervously.

"I just-"

"We're almost there." she said quickly cutting him off.

_What's up with her?_

They began their descent towards a dark alleyway. Raven set down and then slowly lowered the sheet metal that Beast Boy was standing on. The alley was about 35 feet long and 10 feet wide. It was nestled in between two decrepit looking buildings. It wasn't paved either. The ground was just compacted dirt with weeds sprouting everywhere along the sides. There were no weeds along the center indicating that that area was regularly traversed. Beast Boy had no idea why anyone would come here at all, to say nothing of coming here regularly. Two dumpsters were at the end of the alley and did little to improve the appalling ambiance that this alleyway already emanated.

"This is where we're eating?" he asked skeptically as he stepped off the steel plate.

"Well actually we're eating in there." she said motioning to a thick, rusty, cast iron door with a small light fixture over it. There was a white sign over the door that read, in black old English gothic lettering, 'Amontillado'. "It'll be way more dismal in there."

"All right, one: why would you want it to be more depressing? And two: it can get drearier than this alley?"

"You have no idea." she said smiling at him slyly with a mischievous yet reassuring look in her eyes.

Beast Boy just took a deep breath and then smiled at her.

"Lead the way."

_Take the plunge Gar._

Hope you guys liked it! If you think the imagery takes away from the main story, please tell me! I'd like to think that it actually enhances the story, but my opinion is kind of biased. The next chapter should be along soon! Expect mucho awkwardness! Peace and Love!


	5. Chapter 5

Sorry it took so long. I had to rewrite some of the parts, plus I had a weekend back home so I didn't get a lot of work done. This one should be good though. And it is long. About twice as long as most of the other chapters, but well worth it. I thought about splitting it, but that just isn't my style. Maybe a little overzealous in the details, but it all comes together nicely. I used the names of some of my favorite authors and poets for the characters at the café, thought that was a cool idea. I want to apologize in advance for my bad attempt at poetry. It's kind of important to the story, but once you look past my momentary lapse in creativity, it's a pretty good chapter. Enjoy!

I don't own the Teen Titans or any of the characters. Wow, I think a little piece of me just died. Having to protect myself from legal implications resulting from the use of cartoon characters is kind of like hitting one's self in the head with a hammer. Nuf said! This next one though is out of respect. I do not own the names or works of any of the following authors/poets: Edgar Allen Poe, J.D. Salinger, Mark Twain, and Emily Dickinson.

Chapter 5: The 'Cast' of Amontillado

She knocked on the door. A small slat slid open and a pair of grey eyes peered out.

"Yea? What dooya want?" asked a deep, cold voice.

"Hey J.D." Raven said calmly. The figure behind the eyes balked a little.

"Is-is that you Raven?" The door creaked open and there stood one of the biggest people that Beast Boy had ever seen. He must have been at least six and a half feet tall and weighed close to three hundred pounds, mostly muscle from the look of it. His massive shoulders were actually wider than the door. His skin wasn't quite as pale as Raven's. He had a short black, spiked Mohawk and wore a grey T-shirt with a white skull embossed in the center with baggy black cargo pants and large black boots. He had numerous ear piercing, a nose ring, and a spike through the middle of his lower lip. He also wore a metal-spiked, black, leather wristband on his right wrist and a long chain wallet on his left side.

"Love the new look." he said grinning as he stepped aside to let her pass. When Beast Boy tried to come inside a massive arm shot out and barred his path. "I think you might be lost buddy." J.D. said menacingly his face now completely devoid of emotion.

"Cool it J.D.! He's with me." Raven said with a slight air of threat in her voice.

"You got weird choice in friends Raven." J.D. said lowering his arm, his gaze fixed on Beast Boy.

"I could say the same thing." Beast Boy said coolly, retuning the stare.

"He's got spunk, I'll give him that." J.D. said cracking a smile. "And if you speak for him, then I guess he can't be all that bad." He extended his hand to Beast Boy. "Name's Jerome, but people call me J.D."

"Beast Boy." he said grinning and shaking his hand.

"Oh yea. You're one of the Titans right? Didn't recognize you without the spandex." J.D. said laughing a little.

"Hey they're a lot more comfortable than they look! I actually found out just recently that I can't morph in normal clothes." he said glancing at Raven quickly and blushing.

J.D. looked between Beast Boy and Raven several times.

"So you guys here on a date or something?"

"Uhhh…we're…ya see-." Beast Boy stammered.

"What are Mark and Emily up to?" Raven asked quickly and calmly.

"They're inside." J.D. said grinning at Beast Boy.

J.D. closed and locked the door and led them down a dark hallway. They came to a set of double doors that looked like they came from a prison in the 1950's. J.D. pushed open both door's at once. This revealed a large dimly lit room with tables and chairs, like those you see outside of coffee shops, strewn about the room. A small quarter circle stage stood in the corner about two feet above the cobblestone floor. The only light in the room was provided by the single candle lantern at every table and a large candle chandelier that hung from the ceiling by a thick chain. There were a dozen or so other people sitting at the tables. They all appeared to have the same general look: skinny, pale, and wearing a lot of black. All of the people in the room had been chatting and/or drinking coffee and tea, but now they were staring at Beast Boy. The room became eerily quiet, which was saying something because it was fairly eerie in there as it was. The silence seemed to last for hours.

"He's with me." Raven said simply. Most everyone shrugged and then went back to what they were doing, but few individuals kept their eyes on Beast Boy.

_Wow, these people must really respect Raven...or be really afraid of her._

"So people really like you here, huh?" Beast Boy asked Raven.

"I guess you could say that, even though no one will admit to liking me…or anything for that matter." A door swung open on the wall to their left. A guy wearing black rollerblades skated out carrying a tray with a few cups of tea, various pastries, and some salads. He set the contents of the tray down at their respective tables as he glided by them and then skated over to Raven. He was pretty scrawny, had skin just as pale as Raven's, and was about as tall as Beast Boy. He wore a formed black leather jacket with the left arm missing over a tight black T-shirt with black jeans. His unsettling ice blue eyes shone from beneath his black disheveled hair. He had only a single silver ring through the lobe of his right ear and wore a fingerless leather glove with holes punched out for the knuckles on his left hand. He merely scowled, showing no sentiment whatsoever.

"Hey Raven. Haven't seen you round here lately." he said monotonely.

"Hey Mark. How's Emily?" she asked in a similar fashion.

"She's workin' tonight too. One sec." He put his two fingers to his lips and let out a deafening, high pitched whistle. Beast Boy flinched a little, the memory of Starfire's whistling lesson still fresh in his mind. Almost immediately after the whistle a girl wearing identical rollerblades skated out of the same swinging door with a pad of paper in her hand. She had the same intense blue eyes and disheveled black hair as Mark, although her hair was a few inches longer. Her height and skin tone were also the same as Mark's. Unlike Mark though she wore a small grin and had a generally mischievous look on her face. She wore a tight black tank top and a black miniskirt over black compression shorts. She had three silver loop piercings up the length of her ear as well as a fingerless cloth glove that went up to her mid-forearm on her right hand and a dozen black rubber bracelets on her left wrist. The black eyeliner and lipstick made her look fairly grim, but still couldn't draw away from the impish look her smile gave her.

"Raven, Raven, Raven. It's been ages. We were beginning to think you'd gone to the light side." she said jokingly. She turned her attention to Beast Boy. "So who's this little bundle of color? He's kinda cute."

Beast Boy blushed and turned his eyes to the floor.

"Oh yea. This is Beast Boy, another one of the Titans." said Raven.

"I'm Emily." said the girl giving a little wave. "And this is my twin brother Mark. Most people just call us 'the twins'."

"That explains a few things." said Beast Boy. He put his hand towards Mark. "Good to meet ya." Mark just stood there staring expressionlessly over Beast Boy's shoulder. Emily rolled her eyes and shook Beast Boy's hand for her brother.

"A pleasure, I'm sure. Sorry bout my brother. He started this thing where he doesn't acknowledge people who exhibit any emotion whatsoever. It makes talking to him kinda hard."

"Huh, alright I'll give it a try." said Beast Boy doing his best to remove every hint of emotion from his face. "Sup dude?" he said in an uncannily similar fashion to Mark.

"Not much." said Mark in his usual detached manner.

"Not bad." said J.D. "Usually I can't even keep a straight face around Mark. Hey, how long's it been since we talked Mark?" Mark just kept staring blankly into empty space. J.D. sighed heavily.

"So what brings you guys to Amontillado? You guys on a date?" asked Emily playfully.

"We're just here for something to eat, maybe hang out for a bit, then we're gonna catch a movie." said Raven calmly.

"Hmmm, sounds like a date to me." Emily said winking at Beast Boy. "I'll get you guys a table." Emily began skating backwards, motioning for them to follow. Without so much as slowing down, she spun around so that she was skating forward. She stopped by a table in the corner and held out her hand gesturing for them to sit. Beast Boy cut in front of Raven, went over to the table, and pulled her chair out for her. Raven just stood there, as if she were frozen. Then she slowly walked over and hesitantly sat down I the chair. Beast Boy pushed the chair in slightly as she sat down. The he walked around the small table and took his seat. Looking across the table, he saw that Raven had a somewhat stunned look on her face, but at the same time wore a small smile. It didn't have the usual edge of sarcasm that normally accompanied her grins. This one was warm and appreciative. Beast Boy didn't show it, but he was taken aback by this.

_Why's she smiling like that? She's never smiled like that before. All I did was pull her chair out. Hmmm…weird._

Emily, of course, had been watching the whole time.

"Awww, whoever said chivalry was dead?" she said teasingly.

"Guess I'm just old-fashioned." Beast Boy said grinning and scratching the back of his head (The only reason I keep having BB do this is because it's one of my nervous habits, it's just something I can see him doing too). Emily gave a little giggle.

"So what can I get you guys?" she asked. Beast Boy looked questioningly at Raven, just now remembering that they had come here to eat.

"Don't worry, I'll order for us." said Raven. "I'll just have a salad with some vinaigrette dressing and some of Ed's herbal tea. He'll have one of Ed's burgers, fries, and…" she looked at Beast Boy for a second"…I think he'd like a root beer."

"Very progressive, letting the girl order." she said smiling at Beast Boy. "That all?" Emily asked writing their order down on the notepad. Raven nodded. "All right, I think some people ditched on an order like that so Mark should be out with your food in less than a minute." Emily skated away from the table, around some tables, and through the swinging door.

"Uhhh…Ed doesn't make his burgers with meat does he?" Beast Boy asked nervously.

"No." said Raven laughing a little." I wouldn't do that to you. Ed's a vegetarian too so he makes the burgers from black beans. Although you probably wouldn't know it if I didn't tell you."

"Sweet! I love black bean burgers!"

"Yeah I know. I've seen how you scarf them down back home."

"You even knew I like root beer…wait, why were you watching me eat?" asked Beast Boy smirking and raising an eyebrow.

"Honestly, it's kinda hard to ignore. You eating's like watching a shark devour a seal. It's fast, vicious, and frankly, pieces get everywhere."

"Ugh, that's a mental image I coulda done without." Beast Boy said looking a little sick. "I think I lost my appetite." Then Mark came gliding out of the swinging door and skillfully maneuvered in between the tables and chairs with a large amount of food and drinks perched precariously atop the tray he held with one hand over his head. Without even stopping, he wordlessly set their respective food and drinks down in front of them as he circled the table and skated off towards another table.

"Wow, he's good." said Beast Boy quickly grabbing the burger and taking a huge bite.

"Find your appetite again?" asked Raven.

"Find my wha?" asked Beast Boy with a half full mouth.

"Nevermind."

"This is delicious! Whoever this Ed guy is sure knows his way around a veggie burger."

"Ed owns Amontillado. He's also the cook. He makes everything from scratch from the burger you're eating now to my herbal tea."

"Sounds like a cool guy. When can I meet him?" Raven opened her mouth, about to answer his question, and then froze. She closed her mouth and look of into space, looking as though she was deep in thought.

"Come to think of it…I've never met Ed."

"Wait, how long have you been coming to this place?"

"A couple of years."

"And you've never met the owner? Isn't that a little weird?"

"Beast Boy, look around. Weird doesn't mean anything here. Things just are the way they are. You can either go on in life and accept it or foolishly dwell on stupid simple little things that have no meaning in the grand scheme of things." This conversation continued for several more minutes, Beast Boy taking large bits from his burger whenever Raven was explaining the inner workings of the goth mindset, and Raven eating her salad and sipping her tea while Beast Boy did his best to understand Raven's complicated explanations. During one of Raven's longer rationalizations Beast Boy finished his burger and proceeded to chug his entire bottle of root beer. Raven's speech slowed as she watched him drain the rather large bottle. She had completely stopped talking by the time he had finished and set down the bottle. He pounded the middle of his chest twice and let out a belch that rivaled one of Starfire's more notorious gastronomic eruptions. The entire café went silent. Beast Boy looked around and noticed that, once again, all eyes were on him. Even Mark had stopped in his tracks and Emily had poked her head out of the swinging door to see what had caused the sudden quiet.

"Hehe…'scuse me." he said meekly as he grinned and scratched the back of his head, a nervous habit that he had been finding himself doing far more often as of late.

"That was…interesting, to say the least." Raven finally managed to say, breaking the long awkward silence that had fallen over the room. Everyone returned to what they were doing, but every now and then shot an annoyed look towards the table in the corner.

"Uhhh…yeah, sorry bout that. I'm used to hanging around with people who consider burping a competitive sport."

"Don't worry about it. Just warn me next time." Raven said smiling and shaking her head.

"Alright. Hey, what's J.D. doin?" he asked pointing to the stage where J.D. stood in front of a microphone stand with a spotlight on him.

"We've got a vet in the house from back when you losers were still reading Goosebumps. Some of her pieces have even given Ed nightmares. Maybe we can get her to come up. What dooya say Raven?" A stunned Beast Boy looked at Raven and watched as she wordlessly walked up to the stage. J.D. bowed as she stepped up in front of the stage and stood in front of the mic. After J.D. had stepped down off of the stage he walked over to Beast Boy's table, spun Raven's chair so that the back was facing the stage and sat down putting his forearms on top of the chair backing. He looked over and saw the astounded look on Beast Boy's face. "You don't know too much about Raven dooya?" J.D. asked. Beast Boy just shook his head never taking his eyes off of Raven. J.D. just laughed. "Well your in for a treat then."

"I'm going to do something a little different." Raven said emotionlessly into the microphone. Her voice came from seemingly invisible speakers in the walls, not making her voice any louder, but making seem as though it was coming from all around. "I wrote this last night actually and it's not like anything I've written before." She closed her eyes and began to speak. Her voice was cold but passionate at the same time. It was a voice that seemed to speak directly to the heart. They were word that needed to be felt rather than heard.

"My life is a canvas

Painted every shade of black

Devoid of color

I draw the curtains

Here the light cannot touch me

My grayscale existence

A shell with no soul

A spectrum made of shadow

Loved yet alone

All it really takes

Is the vile taint of color

And it is ruined

Shattered masterpiece

Made alive for the first time

Color is my escape"

There was a short silence, and then everyone began snapping their fingers, which is the poetic substitute for clapping. J.D. looked over at Beast Boy who was still staring at Raven. He wore a small smile and his eyes were watering slightly.

"Uhhh, are you ok du-" J.D. was asking before he was cut off by Beast Boy quickly standing up and applauding. Everyone stopped snapping and turned their gazes once again to Beast Boy. Despite the silence Beast Boy kept up the standing ovation. Raven began to blush a little. J.D. just stared at Beast Boy stupefied. Then a grin spread across his face as he stood up and began applauding along with Beast Boy. The rest of the café continued to stare. Emily and even Mark began clapping. It wasn't long before the rest of Amontillado tentatively rose to their feet and began applauding. Even above the near deafening roar, Beast Boy's enthusiastic clapping and whistling could be heard loud and clear. After the applause had subsided, Raven took a bow and returned to her seat which J.D. had vacated in order to usher some of the poets that were going to perform that night up on to the stage. She sat down took a long drink from her cup of herbal tea. After taking a long deep breath she looked at Beast Boy and gave him that same warm appreciative smile that she had when he had pulled out her chair for her. They had both finished eating so they went to find Emily and Mark.

"You guys leavin'? asked Emily as the two approached her and her brother.

"Yea, just put the food on my tab." said Raven.

"But I-" Beast Boy said before Raven quickly silenced him by putting up her hand.

"Don't worry, it's my treat. You're paying for the movie anyway." Raven said smiling which he returned with a playful grin.

"All right. Well, I hope you guys come back soon." Emily said as she hugged Raven while Beast Boy put on the same expressionless face as before and walked up to Mark.

"Seeya round." he said to Mark.

"Sounds good." said Mark as the two exchanged a 'grip, slip, and snap' handshake. The edge of Mark's lip turned up slightly, but only for a second. Emily came over to hug Beast Boy as Raven and Mark shared a simple nod goodbye. Then Raven went to find J.D.

"Good luck with Raven tonight, not that you need it." Emily whispered.

"Thanks Emily." he whispered back as they parted.

"I think you're gonna be good for Raven. As much as we like her, this isn't where she belongs, as much as she wants it to be true. She needs light in her life and all this place has to offer is darkness. You could very well be that light." Emily said smiling softly.

"That is, honestly, the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me." he said smiling at her. "I got a friend you might like. He's a lot like me, only he's a lot smarter, bout six and a half feet tall, and made mostly of metal. I'll introduce you two some time."

"We'll see." she said laughing as Raven came back with J.D.

"Hey Rae! What would you think of Emily and Cyborg?" Beast Boy asked grinning at Raven.

"I think it's a little early for you to be playing matchmaker when you haven't even gotten through our first date."

"So this is a date?" asked J.D. smiling.

"Did you just figure that out?" Emily asked J.D.

"I'm just messin' with'em." he said grinning widely. He extended his fist to Beast Boy. "It was good meetin' you dude."

"Likewise." Beast Boy said connecting his own fist with J.D.'s.

"We should get going." said Raven. "It was good to see you all again."

"You too Raven." said Emily. J.D. smiled and Mark just gave a quick nod. Beast Boy and Raven went through the double doors and started down the entrance hall. Beast Boy pulled open the door and held it for Raven. She smiled at him as she walked through the heavy iron door. It was dark out now, and slightly cooler than before. The moon was directly overhead, a curved blade of soft white light on a background of stars that shone so brightly and clearly that the constellations appeared to pop out of the sky. The two stood facing each other in the dark alley. The light above the door was now off, allowing the glow of moonlight cascade down the walls of the two dilapidated looking buildings which formed the alleyway. Raven stared at Beast Boy, tears beginning to well up in her eyes.

"Rae…what's-" he was cut off when Raven wrapped her arms around his chest and held him tightly. She turned her head and rested it against his chest, pulling him as close to herself as was humanly possible. He was shocked for a moment, but then put his arms around her shoulders and returned her embrace, nuzzling the side of his face against the top of her head.

"You're the color." she said softly.

"Wha?" he asked gently.

"In my…never mind." she said sighing softly. "You got them to clap for me. All of them. You have no idea how sick I was of that soulless snapping."

"Don't mention it. I wish I coulda done more. Your poem really-" he was cut off yet again, this time by Raven placing a gentle kiss on his cheek. As she drew her lips from his cheek he felt a warm tingle where her lips had been. She withdrew from there embrace and smiled at him. She saw the look of shear surprise on his face and couldn't help but laugh.

"Come on tiger, we got a movie to catch." she said happily, yes happily, as she took his hand and started out of the alley. After a few moments of being pulled along by his hand, it all finally sank in. A smile spread across his face.

_To think, the night is only half over._

Hope you guys liked it. Once again I apologize for my pathetic attempt at poetry. I tried to set it up like a series of haikus, but the metaphors were so obvious/crappy that I think it kind of took away from the effect it was supposed to have. If anyone out there has a better original poem for the story (has to be about color and darkness remember), please send it to me. I'll put it in the story and obviously give you credit. It just makes me mad when a bad little stint of writing depreciates the story. Maybe I'm overreacting, I don't know. Oh and what do you think of getting Emily and Cyborg together? Eh, we'll just see what happens. DON'T FORGET TO REVIEW! 'Til next time. Peace and Love!


	6. Chapter 6

Hey everyone! Thanks for all the feedback! Sorry I took so freakin' long turning out another chapter. Spring Break can kinda slow down the process and then I got wicked writer's block. Putting out this chapter was kinda like getting a tumor removed. I feel 75 pounds lighter! I tried something different; the story is now more from Raven's perspective. I thought I pretty well captured Beast Boy's thoughts in previous chapters so I wanted to challenge myself a little. To me it didn't really feel as good as my others, but that's only my opinion. Let me know what you think. Enjoy!

I don't own the Teen Titans or any of the characters. When told I should probably kill myself, I promptly walked over to the window and pretended to throw a would-be-leprechaun out the window and laugh mightily at his misery, true story.

Chapter 6: The Joy of Despair

"So what are we seeing?" Raven asked her green companion. The two stood just outside the glass doors of the large brightly lit movie theater. It was a twenty-five screen theater, the largest in the city, and screened every imaginable movie genre. Beast Boy was leaning up against the wall space in between the glass doors with hands behind his head. Raven stood with a hand on her hip and the other hanging to her side. She watched Beast Boy as he stared into the star speckled night sky. "There's Space Cows, Bill and Ted's Dubious Experience, The Paradox, I know you're gonna pick an action or comedy movie so just pick one. We've been standing here for ten minutes." she said starting to get annoyed.

"Hmmm…" A smile spread across his face. "Wait here. I'll get the tickets." He pushed opened the nearest door and walked up to the ticket counter. Raven saw him talking to the ticket vendor who was a cute girl with light skin and long black hair, who couldn't have been more than a year younger than Raven. The girl giggled at something Beast Boy had said. Raven could feel anger boiling up from within her.

_He's not supposed to be flirting with other girls when he's on a date with me! Oooh, is he gonna get it! And who's that little tramp think she is?_

Raven's eyes began to emit that that oh so familiar black aura. A nearby lamppost was enveloped in a similar fashion and tied into a knot. After realizing that she had let her emotions affect her powers, she did her best to calm herself. She hadn't lost control of her powers like that since the Titans had defeated her father, Trigon, several months prior. Raven realized then that it was because this was a new emotion that she hadn't had experience in controlling before; jealousy. She mentally chanted her usual meditation mantra to try and calm herself.

_Azeroth metrion zinthos. Azeroth metrion zinthos._

After her rage had subsided slightly, and objects around her had stopped contorting, she poked her head from out behind the wall and looked back at the ticket counter. She saw Beast Boy looking up at the movie list while the girl stared at him dreamily with her head propped up on her hands. He looked back down at the girl and said something that was inaudible to Raven, but she distinctly saw him hold two fingers up. The girl looked at him confusedly and said something to Beast Boy, which Raven read from her lips to be 'Who are you here with?' Beast Boy simply pointed out the glass door to the pale, purple-eyed girl who was spying on them from behind the wall next to the doors. He cast a warm reassuring smile at Raven as he pointed. He held her gaze even as her lowered his hand and began to turn back to the now disappointed looking girl and get their tickets. Raven felt herself blush as she withdrew her head back behind the wall and leaned up against it.

_How could I be that stupid? He does stupid things sometimes, but he's never insensitive about it. If I lose control like that every time he makes a girl laugh I'm gonna end up bringing the whole city down...this is gonna take some getting used to._

"You ready?" Raven jumped. Beast Boy was leaning up against the inside of the open door.

"You scared me!" said Raven breathing a little faster than normal.

"Sorry, didn't mean to." He said grinning. "You were watchin' me." he said in a teasing manner.

"I was not!" said Raven defensively. She could feel her face reddening again. "I just…you were…that girl…shut up." she said grinning, finding herself flustered for the first time that night.

"I think I'm rubbing off on you Rae." Beast Boy said still smiling. He held his hand out to her. "Come on." She took his hand and he gently pulled her inside.

"So what are we seeing?"

"It's a surprise." he said mischievously. She raised an eyebrow at this.

_What's he up to? It's comedy or action. He knows I don't particularly like either. So what could he-_

"Oh! You want something?" Beast Boy's voice snapped her out of her thoughts and she saw that they were standing in front of the concession counter. She gave him a look that seemed to ask 'Are you joking?' And then she saw that he was completely serious.

"Didn't we just eat?"

"Yea, so?"

"You're still hungry?"

"I'm always hungry!" She gave him the same disbelieving look. "Hey, reigning tofu eating champion!" he said putting both of his thumbs to his chest. "Why else do you think Cy calls me 'the bottomless beast'?"

"I assumed it was because you couldn't keep your pants on or something." she said snickering at her own joke.

"Shut up." he said blushing slightly, but also beginning to laugh. "So do you want something or not?"

"I'll get something to drink, but other than that I'm fine."

"Uhhh…I don't think they serve tea here."

"I can drink other things you know!"

"Coulda fooled me." he said grinning

"A regular diet cola is fine." she said smirking back. Beast Boy walked up to the counter and began ordering. (I would have used a name brand cola, but I fear the cola corporations may make an attempt on my life in some overzealous attempt at making an example out of someone which they'd just end up trying to cover up anyway…yeah.)

"Can I get a regular diet cola, a large root beer, large popcorn, and…a box of Milk Duds." (However I feel no trepidation of vengeance at the hands of the Hershey Company! Do your worst!)

"Bottomless seems to be an understatement."

"Hey that's nothing." he said handing the money for the snacks to the vendor. "If I'm with Cy or Star I get a double super size popcorn and three more boxes of candy." He said as handed her the diet cola and held his drink in his left hand while holding the oversized tub of popcorn and candy in the crook of his left arm.

"All set she asked?" Raven asked which he replied to by smiling and taking her hand. He started down the hall that led to the theaters. They took a left and then a right passing theaters one through four. They stopped in front of theater five.

"This is us." said Beast Boy grinning slyly. Still hand in hand, they entered the theater. There were forty-five to fifty rows of about thirty seats. Around fifteen of the rows made up the level front seats and the remaining thirty-five or so rows could be reached by stairs that made up the aisles. The chairs themselves were heavily padded, reclined slightly, and had raisable armrests with built in cup holders; very comfortable to say the least. To Raven's surprise all of the seats were empty even though the previews had already started. Even though it was a Tuesday night, one would assume that there'd be at least a few people going out to see a movie.

_What kind of bizarre flick did he pick to turn out this sorta crowd?_

"So where do you wanna sit?" asked Beast Boy once again tearing Raven from her thoughts. His inquiry had a cheerful tone to it, perhaps even a little too jovial for Beast Boy's diehard spirit.

"What are you so happy about?" she asked.

"Don't worry about it, now where dooya wanna sit?" he asked again smiling.

"I don't know." she said unenthusiastically as she began wandering up the stairs that formed the aisle with Beast Boy following close behind. She randomly chose a row a little more than halfway up the stairs and found a seat near the middle. After sitting down she placed her drink into the oversized built in cup holder in her left armrest. Beast Boy plopped down in the seat to her right and mirrored her in placing his own drink in the cup holder in his right armrest. He held his bulky tub of popcorn and candy in his lap. After getting settled, he grabbed a handful of popcorn and shoved into his mouth and then offered some to Raven by tilting the bucket towards her and raising his eyebrows inquisitively.

"No thanks." She said as she took a sip of her cola. He shrugged and took a big slurp of root beer. They watched the remaining previews in silence. Beast Boy watched intently as a muscle bound action hero leveled a city using an obnoxiously large firearm that looked like it was built out of an extensive array of guns and explosives strapped together.

"Is that a missile duct taped to the side?" Raven asked in a hushed but exclamatory tone.

"Tactical nuke." said Beast Boy in his normal conversive tone with his eyes still transfixed on the screen. "And you don't have to whisper. Nobody else's here."

For some reason Raven didn't really realize that they were alone together. She knew that the theater was empty except for them, but that this meant that she and Beast Boy were by themselves hadn't occurred to her. The strangest part was that it all felt right.

_Why doesn't this fell awkward? Being alone with the only boy who's ever liked me should make me anxious or something, but I've never felt more comfortable._

The already dimmed lights were extinguished, and with an already black screen the room was pitched into perpetual darkness. In large white letters the word 'Despair' faded onto the screen. Raven's mouth went slightly agape. She had made plans to see this very movie later that week with her friends from Amontillado.

_Why on Earth would he pick a goth movie? He hates them!_

"Are we in the right theater?" she asked him.

"Yeah, why?"

"Well, you hate these kinds of movies."

"But you like'em right?"

"Of course, but-"

"Then I like'em." he said smiling.

"So the only reason we're seeing this is because I wanted to see it?"

"No, I wanted to see it too."

"Really? Why?"

"I had to see what you were so excited about."

"Wait, how did you even know I wanted to see it?"

"Rae, the only times I've ever seen you take your eyes off your books is to watch those discovery channel specials on Wicca, Fullmetal Alchemist, or trailers for Despair. It was pretty obvious."

"You were watching me?" she said wearing a small smile and blushing slightly.

"Yeah, something wrong with that?" he asked smiling.

"Nothing at all." she said softly. With the opening credits, which were done in thin white lettering, still rolling the theater was still as black as night. While Raven could see as clearly as if it were day because of the excessive amount of time she spent in the dark, she knew Beast Boy couldn't see his own hands. She was glad for this because it meant that he couldn't see her blush and smile so widely. Slowly she placed her hand on top his hand which currently rested on his own left leg. She heard him inhale quickly and felt his muscles in his arm tighten in surprise. He eventually relaxed and turned his hand palm up intertwining her fingers with his own and gently squeezing. The credits finished rolling and the screen flashed brightly. The bright white light illuminated their faces. They could now both see the unbridled joy they both wore on their faces. Seeing this on each other's expressions only made them smile wider. The brilliant light faded to a black and white scene depicting a little girl and boy standing on a hill holding hands in a similar fashion. The pair were however overlooking a burning village so their sentiments were probably of a significantly different nature in comparison to those of the two currently holding hands in their seats in a movie theater. Despite the Kodak moment that they were sharing, Raven also wanted to see the movie. Even more so though, she didn't want the tender warmness his touch had inspired in her to fade so she made a rather ingenious compromise. Sliding her hand out of his, she raised the armrest that separated them. She then scooted right up next to him and simultaneously took his wrist and placed it around her shoulder. While slipping her right arm behind his back she also placed her left hand on his chest and resting her head on his shoulder holding him in a small embrace. He pulled her closer with the arm wrapped around her shoulders and she returned this by nuzzling against his shoulder. She could tell that he was enjoying this by the small laugh he let out as she snuggled up against him. They went back to the movie which now had reached the girl crying over the arrow filled corpses of what appeared to be her parents. In spite of this rather morbid sight, the compassion of their embrace did not diminish. They spent the next half hour of the movie in silence, but still communicating their feelings wordlessly with their body language. Simple shifts in weight or gentle squeezes said more than their words ever could. Even their subconscious thoughts, which they themselves were unaware of, became obvious to the other. After a little while Beast Boy's comforting grip slackened and Raven looked up at him to what was the matter. His mouth hung slightly open and his eyes were glued to the screen. He was obviously very enthralled by the storyline of the movie. Raven smiled to herself.

_Looks like we've got more in common than either of us thought._

As much as she enjoyed his fascination with the movie's plot, she preferred him being fascinated with her. Stealthily sliding up his side and getting her face right next to his ear, she licked her finger and stuck it in his ear. He jerked so hard he almost fell out of his seat.

"Hey! What was that for?" he almost yelled rubbing his ear.

"Seemed to me that you forget I was here. I just thought I'd remind you." She said grinning.

"Sorry, but can you blame me? This movie is awesome! Depressing to no end, but awesome none the less." he said now smiling as well.

"Glad you like it. Well I don't want either of us to miss anything; just don't forget about me again."

"I didn't forget! I just got…distracted."

"Just shut up and watch the movie." she said shaking her head. She cuddled back up against him and continued to watch the movie. An hour later the movie closed with a shot of a wilted rose and then faded out.

"Wow." Beast Boy said slowly.

"Is that all you can say." she asked looking up at him. He nodded which caused her to laugh softly. "Come on, let's go."

They got up and walked down the stairs to exit the theater. Leaving the theater, they walked down the hallway, through the lobby, and out the glass doors.

"So what do you want to do now?" Raven asked Beast Boy now that they were outside. He yawned and looked at the time on his communicator.

"I think I'm ready to head back to the Tower." he said.

"You don't want to hit a club or anything?"

"No thanks. You don't know what kinda day I've had. It was the best day of my life, but also the most exhausting. I just need some sleep. Sorry."

"Don't worry about it. It's not like we can't go out again." she said smiling. "I'm just trying to keep things_ interesting_." A stunned look shot across Beast Boy's face because when Raven said 'interesting' he also heard it in his head. Raven laughed and levitated a manhole cover over to him. "Hop on tiger."

Hope you guys liked it. To me this chapter felt a little sub-par. I don't think I captured Raven's thoughts as well as I could have, but I am my own worst critic. Oh, Fullmetal Alchemist is one of my favorite anime shows of all time, and I could see Raven watching it so I just kinda stuck it in there. Don't forget to review. Next chapter's the last. I know I'm sad too. But don't worry; more stories are yet to come and I've got tons of ideas. If you have any ideas for new chapters don't be afraid to voice your ideas. If their better than mine why not? Peace and Love!


	7. Chapter 7

Hey everybody! Oooo last chapter! Will it end happily? Or in all out disaster? Of course it'll end well! What kind of monster do you think I am? Hehe. Oh yeah, thanks for all the good feedback. Apparently I'm too tough on myself! I want to thank the following people for being avid readers and reviewers:

• Coyote

• WickedWitchoftheSE

• Agent of the Divine One

• Sasscreech

• XRain-StormX

• TeenTitanDib

• acosta perez jose ramiro

• One Knight in Bangkok

• Jesus.Lives

• Kyo-kun AND Hatsuharu are hot

• Earth Cat

-Thanks you guys! Your positive comments were what kept me writing into the wee hours of the morning when I should have been studying, sleeping, and eating! Just kidding. I'm gonna go back to Beast Boy's perspective for this one. We have a similar way of thinking so it seems more realistic. Besides, it's how I started this story so it only seems right that I finish it the same way. Oh, sorry it took a little long, I just bought Kingdom Hearts 2, 'nuf said. It should be well worth the wait though. It's definitely the longest thing I've ever written, but what else could you expect from the story finale? Closure, hooray! Enjoy!

I don't own Teen Titans or any of the characters. Thanks to for the hero info. "Damnable mice! How will we know when it is time to frolic?" "Intuition." (Twisp & Catsby)

Chapter 7: A Night To Remember

A green teenage boy dressed in mostly purple and green flying across the night sky on a circular metal plate next to a pale, violet-haired girl dressed in all black would probably be an unusual sight to most normal people. But these were hardly normal teenagers. The green boy had the awesome ability to transform into any animal he desired, which was an ability given to him by his parents in order to help him overcome a terrible tropical disease that only animals could survive. The process by which the common genetic bonds of animals and humans were isolated also left his hair, skin, and eyes green. His upbringing was sought to by an African tribe who were befriended by his parents which exposed him to the many animals he was able to morph into and also gave him excellent survival skills. The girl had paramount telepathic and telekinetic powers which she had learned during her childhood in the otherworldly dimension of Azarath from Arella, her mother, and Azar IV, the great-granddaughter of Azar, the founder of Azarath. Her father, Trigon the Terrible, had placed within her his own hate and malice as a means to control her, so she was taught to maintain control of her emotions at all times. With her father defeated by the Teen Titans several months prior, she was free to express her true feelings at anytime she wished. Their names are Beast Boy and Raven and this is their story.

The moon and stars shone brightly on the pitch-black blanket that night brought over the city. The cool night breeze made his short spiky hair flicker slightly almost like fire while her dark hair cascaded beautifully over her shoulders and flowed as if it were one with the wind itself. While she kept her eyes straight ahead, he never took his eyes off of her for a moment, not even to blink. He found himself staring at her a lot more than he had planned, but didn't regret a moment of it. Seeing her superb form against the skyline of Jump City was breathtaking. Words couldn't express the affection he held for this gothic heroine. Her dark appearance and seemingly dismal outlook on life fooled most, but not him. He saw the beauty of the soul that lied beneath the black clothes and heartrending poems. He knew the real Raven, the Raven that her father's hatred had kept under lock and key for so many years. Despite her mysteriousness, Beast Boy actually knew quite a bit about her and her past.

_I never thought about it before, but how much do the rest of the Titans know about me? Robin and Cy are kind of a mystery, but what secrets should I have? At least they have secret identities to protect. I don't have any secret identity, just a past life. It may be my real name, but Garfield Logan died with mom and dad. Maybe she deserves to know...hmmm...maybe some other time. No reason to put a damper on tonight. She deserves to be happy after all the sadness and anger she's had to put up with. And I don't think I want it to end either. I mean look at her. She's just so...so-_

"Beautiful." he whispered.

"What?" she asked turning to him. He pointed past her to the city which sparkled just like the night sky above them and reflected off the bay which was aberrantly calm. It looked as though there were a second city lying just below the black water. It was a sight few got to see because it was only visible to those who could fly or get to the top of Titan Tower. Beast Boy saw it every night, but tonight it seemed exceptionally beautiful. They were approaching the Tower so Raven began descending, but she never took her eyes off the captivating sight of the city. Raven touched down and then let the manhole cover Beast Boy was floating on lower to the ground. He stepped off and stood beside her as she continued to stare at the mirrored metropolis.

"Wow." she said softly and slowly.

"That all you got to say?" he asked laughing. She nodded which just made him laugh more.

"I've never seen the city like this before." she said softly.

"I know, it's something isn't it?" he said smiling. "Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night and just sit in my window and stare at it until I fall back to sleep." He reached out and took her hand, once again intertwining his own fingers with hers, but not looking at her directly. "It seems especially beautiful tonight though." he said softly still not looking at her, but staring at the city instead. While her grip was loose at first, almost as though she didn't realize he was holding her hand, but eventually she squeezed appreciatively. As they simultaneously turned and faced each other their eyes met. Neither wore a smile, but rather an expression composed of several emotions; happiness, sadness, affection, confusion, and several feelings that would take volumes to describe. Not even thinking, Beast Boy wrapped his arms around her shoulders and embraced her tightly. Slowly slipping her arms around his midsection, she rested her head on his shoulder and nuzzled his neck. He deeply inhaled the alluring scent he had come to relish in such a short time. The gentle aroma of lavender created a calming euphoria that was both warm and relaxing, like a hot shower after a long workout, which he had actually done earlier that day. But that paled by comparison. His entire body, which was weary from the long day's events, loosened as the knots in his muscles came undone and the butterflies, which had been carrying out an epic battle against his stomach for the last couple of hours, finally called a truce. The intense requiescence made him feel as though he was asleep while still awake, like a dream that didn't end with slumber. Beast Boy couldn't shake the feeling of deja-vu from the back of his mind, but did his best to ignore it. He had much more important things on his mind. He didn't feel like he could put words to his feelings. He felt it should be meaningful and awe inspiring, but at the same time not a speech. After he realized he didn't know enough big words to make a Shakespearian declaration of his affection, he went with the classic short and sweet.

"I…I love you Raven." He spoke these words tenderly, but also so softly he wasn't even sure she had heard them. A long silence followed and he was beginning to feel foolish. He figured that she either hadn't heard him, or was trying to think of a way to let him down easy. He was about to repeat what he had said as a way to alleviate his angst about her feelings towards him, or lack there of, in hopes that she simply hadn't heard, when her embrace tightened. A verbal reply would have been much more reassuring, but deep down Beast Boy felt that this was just as good so he tightened his own hold on her. He felt a smile spread across his own face, and even though he couldn't see hers, he could sense that she was smiling too. Then he felt a warm, wet spot forming on his shoulder.

_What the...what could be doing that?_

He gently pushed her away and held her just inside an arm's length. Small droplets rolled down her slightly red cheeks, but she still wore a smile. He felt both worried about her emotional wellbeing and confused as to why she would smile and cry at the same time.

"Wha…why are you crying?" he asked with a serious look of concern on his face. Her smile widened slightly and she threw her arms back around him, hugging him so tightly he could barely breathe. Beast Boy exhaled sharply, but didn't ask her to ease up. Even though his ribcage felt ready to collapse under the immense strain of Raven's tight embrace, he knew she was only doing it out of gratitude so he simply closed his eyes, put his arms back around her, and held her gently putting one arm around her and cradling the back of her head with his other hand. She buried her face in his neck. He could feel her soft, smooth skin against his own. Her tears ran off her own face, onto his neck, and down his shirt onto his chest. Her hair felt soft and warm under his palm with that same attractive fragrance about it. She relaxed her hold on him and nuzzled his neck once again. He responded in kind by gently rubbing his cheek against the side of her head. She slowly leaned back and looked up at him. Her purple eyes seemed to dance the way the moonlight reflected off of them. He moved his arms so that one was a round her waist and the other on her back. Although neither of them wore a smile, the intensity of their locked eyes showed how they were feeling better than their faces ever would be able to. Raven's mouth hung oh so slightly open indicating her desire which Beast Boy read like a book. He pulled her close, both of their eyes shutting as the distance between their faces closed. Beast Boy opened his own mouth in the same way as Raven. When their lips met gently, Beast Boy hears a soft voice in his head.

_I love you too Garfield._

It was a moment of pure bliss for the two, even if it was just for a moment. The feeling of her warm, supple lips against his own was positively overwhelming. Although brief, it was probably the greatest moment of either of their lives. They parted and stared at each other lovingly. After what seemed to be hours Beast Boy finally cracked a smile which Raven mimicked. He then closed his eyes and rested his forehead against hers. He opened his eyes a short while later to find and unsmiling Raven staring at him. His own smile faded when he saw the unhindered longing in her eyes. He leaned in and gave her a long, passionate, assertive, and slightly wet kiss. His lips gently fluctuated, massaging hers. Upon feeling this she purred softly and pressed a little more forcibly into the kiss. As soon as they parted from this kiss, they quickly pushed back in for another, and another, and yet another. As they continued she ran her fingers through his hair and he pulled her waist closer to him. She giggled when his tongue lightly brushed her lower lip and joined in soon after, playfully grazing his lips with her own tongue. She gently pushed a way from him her cheeks still slightly clammy from her tears.

"What happened to you being tired?" she asked smiling.

"I found something worth staying up for." he said returning her smile and stroking her back. "It is getting a little cold out here though. Maybe we should head inside."

"You're not comfortable?" she asked pulling his body close to hers and grinning.

"No…it's just…I thought." he stammered turning a little red.

"Don't worry about it." she said laughing. "It is getting a little chilly." She put her arm around his waist and lead him to the stairwell outcropping. He put his arm around her shoulders and squeezed affectionately. They walked down the stairway and into the living room. The TV was on, something on Animal Planet about tapeworms. Starfire was sitting on the couch and began to turn when she heard them come in.

_Uh-oh!_ _Rae won't want anyone to know. Not yet anyway._

Beast Boy quickly tried to push away from Raven, but she held him in place. Then he heard her voice in his head again.

_You got yourself into this, now you're gonna ride it out with me._

He turned his head to look at her. She was looking at Starfire, but smiling from what she had said. She once again projected her voice into his mind.

_Don't worry about it. I want everyone to know._

This made him smile as well. Starfire turned and looked over the couch. She looked shocked at first, but then broke into a wide smile.

"Oh friends! This is a most glorious development!" she said gleefully flying up off the couch and over to them. "I wondered where you two were this evening. So, are you in the love?" Raven and Beast Boy looked at each other again and laughed. It wasn't the question that made them laugh as much as the way it was said. Then they stared at each other for a moment, after which Raven turned to Starfire and nodded slowly. Starfire let out a squeal of delight and wrapped her arms around her two friends. "This calls for the making of Jelorbnuks (Gel-orb-nucks)! I shall be up with moon and sun, but it will be worth it!" The two stared at her confused. "Oh it is the name of my new creation!" Beast Boy smiled in understanding, but Raven continued to look baffled.

"Might I ask what 'Jelorbnuks' are?" she asked.

"Oh they're jalapeños dunked in ranch dressing and raspberry jelly." he said like it was the most obvious thing in the world which she responded to with a look of mild disgust. "They're really good actually." She stared at him in disbelief.

"You guys are weird." she said now smiling. Beast Boy laughed and Starfire continued to wear her oblivious smile.

"Anyway, get some sleep Star. It's late." Beast Boy said to Starfire. "I'll help you make a big batch of Jerl…Jeb…uhhh…the pepper thingies tomorrow."

"I anticipate it greatly!" said Starfire smiling.

"Oh, and don't tell anyone else about us." Raven said to Starfire. "I think we'd rather they heard it from us."

"Do not worry yourselves friends. I shall adhere to your wishes."

"Thanks Star." said Beast Boy. "We're gonna go to sleep now."

"I wish you pleasant dreams dearest friends. I too shall participate in the slumber as soon as I finish this fascinating documentary on hot dogs and their elongated inhabitants." she said smiling, once again oblivious to their looks of mild disgust. Starfire began to float back to the couch but then turned around. "Oh! And I congratulate you on your finding of each other."

"Thank you Starfire. Sweet dreams." said Raven. Starfire smiled and flew back to the couch to resume watching tapeworms writhe through digestive tracts. "I think I might have to join you as a vegetarian." Raven whispered to Beast Boy who smiled and snickered at hearing this. They began towards the bedroom wing, still holding one another closely. They reached their rooms, which remained, as always, right across the hall from each other. Their rooms had always seemed far too close before what with Beast Boy's deafening music which drove Raven insane, and Raven's deafening silence which would have led Beast Boy to question whether she was alive or not, if he hadn't known she practically never left her room anyway. Now, however, their rooms felt thousands of miles apart. Neither wanted to leave the other's warm embrace for the quiet isolation of their own rooms. They stood unmoving in the middle of the hall, neither really sure of what to do. Slowly turning their heads, they looked at each other, both wearing a look of uncertainty. Seeing the identical look in each other's eyes, they smiled and pulled one another close. They once again engaged in a series of long passionate kisses.

"I love you Rae." Beast Boy said quickly when they momentarily parted in between kisses.

"I love you too." Raven said amid another flurry of soft kisses. They began to slow down and eventually locked into a long fervent and somewhat wet kiss. Breaking the bond their lips had formed they laid their foreheads against each other. Both were breathing faster than normal, their breath short from the zealous display of affection. "Thank you for tonight. It was even better than I ever dreamed. I can honestly say that this was the best night of my life."

"You dreamed about our date?" he asked grinning.

"Yea, you got a problem with that?" she asked poking his chest in a pseudo-aggressive manner.

"None whatsoever." he said smiling. "It was my pleasure Rae. I wanted this to be a special night for you. You deserve to be happy now after the hell your life was because of your dad. I promise you that I'll make sure nobody ever causes you hurt like that again. I care about you way too much to let you be in pain like that. You don't have to hide in the darkness anymore." He pulled back slightly and looked at her. She was looking down and tears were flowing down her cheeks. He placed his index and middle finger under her chin and gently lifted her head to see her face better. Her eyes were welled up and her cheeks were slightly red. He used his thumb to wipe the tears from beneath her eyes while still keeping his fingers under chin. "No more tears, ok? I don't want you to be anything but happy from now on." he said grinning. This made her smile and laugh softly. He kissed her tenderly on the forehead. "That's better." he said bringing her lips to his. When they parted Beast Boy smiled and winked at her. "Night Rae." he said slowly backing away from her towards his bedroom door. He didn't want to leave her, but figured that the sooner he got to bed, the sooner he'd wake up and get to be with her again. He could tell by the look in her eyes that she understood.

"Night Gar." She said smiling and turning to go into her room. He watched as the door to her room slid open and she walked in. The door silently slid closed behind her, leaving him alone again. He opened his own door and went in, closing it behind him. He took off his skateboarding shoe and caringly placed them back in their box and back in his closet. He then took off his green hoodie and threw it over a chair. He shed his socks, T-shirt, and jeans, and tossed them onto the top bunk. He pulled a clean pair of green flannel pajama pants from the bottom drawer of his dresser and pulled them on. He yawned and slipped into the bottom bunk, slipping under the covers. He laid his head down onto the pillow and slid his hands behind his head. Thinking back on the long, but eventful day he couldn't help but smile. He closed his eyes and let the feelings of affection and joy lull him to sleep. Sleep began to take him when his bed began to shake. His eyes snapped open just in time to see black tentacles that seemed to be made out of darkness itself, shoot from the bed and snare him. He tried to yell for help, but one of the tendrils cover his mouth. They wrapped themselves around him and pulled him down into the mattress. He then began to sink into the darkness that had enveloped his bed. The shadow vines were pulling him into the black eternity beneath him. Shear terror swept over him when everything went dark. He closed his eyes and tried to get his panic under control. He opened his eyes and to both his relief and surprise he found that he was no longer trapped in that realm of darkness. He was on a bed staring at a charcoal black ceiling. He sat up, supporting himself with one of his arms, and looked around the dim candlelit room. There were a half dozen book cases, a gloomy looking desk and mirror, and several sinister looking artifacts including a familiar looking hand mirror. And there, floating just above the bed in a meditative position with her eyes closed and wearing a dark blue tank top and matching dark blue pajama bottoms was Raven. He just stared at her, breathing heavily and retaining some of his previous look of alarm. She lowered down to the bed and opened her eyes. She smiled and crawled across the bed. After laying a quick affectionate kiss on his still shocked face, she laughed.

"Sorry about that." she said grinning, closing her eyes, and scratching the back of her head as Beast Boy had done so many times that night.

"Wha…what was that?" he asked. She smiled.

"I teleported you over hear. Yea, it's kinda weird if you're not used to it."

"You coulda just come over and knocked."

"But I had just gotten all comfortable." she said putting on a mach pouting face. "And then I realized how much I missed you holding me." She crawled over him, putting one arm to either side of his body, putting her face a few inches from his. She positioned one of her legs in between his and the other out side of his. "And it was more fun anyway." she said playfully as she began to tickle him. He went into a fit of laughing and twitching as she ran her nimble fingers up and down his exposed ribcage. When she finally stopped she collapsed on top of him. She laid against his bare chest which rose and fell deeply from being tickled. When his breathing slowed he wrapped his surprisingly muscular arms around her. She closed her eyes and relaxed. She wanted to enjoy his comforting embrace which she had come to anticipate greatly, as though it were her reason for getting up each morning. She could hear his slow rhythmic breathing. She looked up and saw that his eyes were closed and his mouth hung slightly open. He was asleep. She smiled to herself. What could she expect? He had had a much longer day than her. Just being with him, being held by him was satisfying enough. He was kinda cute when he slept anyway. She used her powers to extinguish the candles and pull the covers over the both of them. She slid her arms under his shoulders and pulled him close to her. She nestled close to him and closed her eyes. She felt her entire body loosen up. She had never felt happier in her entire life. Every moment she seemed to spend with him seemed to be better than the previous one. She had seen a side of him that she never thought could exist. Deep down he was sensitive, intelligent, and even romantic. It didn't matter if he was goofy and a little clumsy, it only added to his charm. Even though she had known him for quite a long time, she never realized how rare a person he was. All she knew now though was that after all the darkness, she finally had some light in her life, and it came in the form of a wiry green boy. The warmth and metrical beat of his heart was steadily coercing her into sleep. She couldn't wait for tomorrow. Waking up used to be a thing of dread, but now it just meant the beginning of another adventure with her true love. "Night 'tiger'." she whispered before she let sleep carry her away.

_This is definitely going to be interesting._

The End

Damn it feels good to have that all off my mind and onto paper! I'm really happy with the way it all turned out. Hope you guys enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Don't forget to review! Oh, any ideas for future stories are welcome! I'm thinking a triple date with BB& Rae obviously, but also Robin and Starfire, and hooking Cyborg up with Emily. What do you think? Anyway, thanks again to all off my readers and reviewers. There wouldn't be a story if it weren't for you! 'Til we meet again! Peace and Love.


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